The zero non-compliance ISO audit equates to seven-and-a-half years of “continued excellence”, with the company also receiving praise for “unique improvement initiatives” and exceeding assessor requirements.
A two-day audit carried out under the requirements of the Security Industry Authority’s Approved Contractor Scheme (ACS) assessed the standards and practices of Pilgrims’ security guarding discipline and operations.
As regular SMT Online readers will know, the ACS enables qualifying organisations to distinguish themselves as being among the best providers of private security services in the UK.
The report stated that Pilgrims had exceeded expectations, with assessors identifying a number of good practices (including having clearly defined Service Level Agreements in place, regularly reviewed performance figures and performance graphs on general display).
Upon completion of the audit, the SIA’s assessors found Pilgrims had no areas in need of improvement.
Improvement on the previous score
Pilgrims’ contract development manager, Des Ewers, told SMT Online: “We’re pleased to have achieved an even better score than the previous year’s successful audit. In addition, we received praise on our improvement initiatives TacEval and MinEval. These are proactive training and auditing processes focused specifically on Pilgrims’ clients’ needs.”
Ewers believes that TacEval and MinEval ensure the company remains well ahead of changing requirements and risks, and maintains a constant training and auditing cycle for its staff and to assist procedures.
Following on from the SIA Approved Contractor Scheme audit, Pilgrims was also subject to an ISO9001:2008 surveillance visit for its provision of security guarding services in accordance with the requirements of BS 7499 and BS 7858.
Again, Pilgrims excelled, with a result of zero major or minor non-compliances on its Management System Audit Report (Pilgrims’ fifteenth consecutive ISO audit with zero non-conformances).
Process-quality driven
“ISO surveillance visits are process-quality driven,” added Ewers. “They complement the SIA’s Approved Contractor Scheme very well by reflecting that our operating standards and practices are up to scratch at every level.”
In conclusion, Ewers stated: “All in all, the two audits provide a comprehensive benchmark, enabling us to ensure that the standards and processes we have in place provide themaximum benefit to all of our stakeholders.”
For further information access the company’s excellent website (a dedicated link is provided on the right hand panel of this page)
